President Trump told reporters he’d “try” to attend Donald Trump Jr.’s Bahamas wedding this weekend, before quickly turning the conversation to tensions abroad.
At the White House on Thursday, President Trump fielded a question about whether he would travel to the Bahamas for Donald Trump Jr. and Bettina Anderson’s wedding. He suggested the date wasn’t ideal for him.
“He’d like me to go,” Trump said of his eldest son. “But it’s going to be just a small, little private affair, and I’m going to try and make it.”
He then laid out what he described as the complication, linking it to ongoing international issues.
“I said, ‘You know, this is not good timing for me with Iran and other things,'” he told reporters, before joking that he’d be “killed” by the “fake news” whether he attended or not.
Trump also offered a brief remark about the bride while speaking with reporters. “He’s got a very, a person who I’ve known for a long time, and hopefully they are going to have a great marriage,” Trump said.
Page Six reports the event is expected to be a low-key gathering, limited to close family and friends, held on a private island in the Bahamas.
Despite the president saying he intended to try to be there, sources told CNN he was not expected to attend.
After his comments, the White House released his weekend schedule, which listed him as being in Bedminster, New Jersey, on Saturday.
Trump Jr., 47, and Anderson, 39, a model and Palm Beach socialite, shared their engagement news at a White House holiday party in December. This will be Trump Jr.’s second marriage; he was previously married to Vanessa Trump for 12 years before their divorce in 2018.
As the clip spread online, reactions poured in, with many commenters focusing on the contrast between a family milestone and the president’s immediate shift to military and diplomatic concerns.
“Contemplating not attending your own son’s wedding because you’re planning on murdering people,” one user wrote. “He is the most cold blooded person.”
“Nothing says father of the year like weighing a wedding against a bombing campaign,” another added. “Your son gets maybe three sentences before you pivot to geopolitics.”
Criticism continued in the same vein. “Iran will still be a crisis on Monday,” one person observed. “Your son only gets this Saturday once. But sure, the country comes first as always.”
Others were more direct: “A new low every day for the US.”